


Leaves of Yggdrasil

by HolyMaidenHuntress (MorrigansPriestess)



Category: The Shannara Chronicles (TV)
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Death, Dendrophilia, Multi, Oral Sex, Original Character(s), References to Norse Religion & Lore, Season/Series 01 Spoilers, Sexual Content, Threesome - F/F/M, alternative start of season 2
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-27
Updated: 2016-10-31
Packaged: 2018-07-10 14:19:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 11
Words: 16,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6988453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MorrigansPriestess/pseuds/HolyMaidenHuntress
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>[Formerly "Red & Silver, Blue & Gold"] ~*~ The battle against the Dagda Mor has left a lot of shattered lives and hearts. But maybe there's hope for all of them, because an old force of good will rise to help them defeat the ancient Evil that is about to rise from the Forbidding.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there.  
> This is my first English fiction for years. English isn't my native language, but I've got a good beta reader on hand to eleminate the worst mistakes.  
> This fanfiction starts between two scenes in 1.10: the one where Allanon fights with Wil at the Ellcrys and the one where Wil rides off to save Eretria in Safehold.  
> It will be mostly Wilberle with maybe one or two Princess Rover/Wilbertria moments. So if you don't like Wilberle, you better don't read this fanfiction.

Amberle _dreamed._  
Of limbs and hair and eyes. Of her fragile, human body.  
Of touching Wil just once more.  
She shuddered. And the leaves of her new body began to rustle.

Ander _mourned._  
His father. His brothers. His lover.  
And Amberle. He mourned her body and her life.  
He looked out of the window and could see her.  
The red leaves, that danced in the wind.

Eretria _fought._  
For her life. For her honour.  
She tasted blood, broke bones.  
Her knife cut through throats and tendons.  
She screamed. Freedom was so close.  
Down here in Safehold.

Wil _had loved._  
In vain.


	2. Chapter 2

Will laid his head on Amberle’s trunk. He was alone for the whole day now. Nobody visited Amberle, nobody was looking for her. The shock was deep, everyone suffered from it. Allanon went away to Ander. The moon had risen and its shine got stuck in the red leaves of the tree, that Wil didn’t want to leave. Fires burned around him, candles and sconces. He was happy to be alone with Amberle.

She was silent. There was nothing, not a word, no reaction when he touched the tree. No pictures, no thoughts. Wil had wished so hard to hear her voice once again, even if it was just a whisper in his head. He remembered the time they made love in the cave and he couldn’t accept the fact he would never touch her again. He had loved Amberle and he still did.

And now she stood in front of him, no longer flesh and blood and bones, but made of bark, resin and leaves. Heavy branches and blood red buds. Wil felt tears running down his cheeks. Sadness, loss and anger made him unable to think clearly. He knew he had to do something. Just… something! Nothing was worse than being idle. He sat here and didn’t know what to do and it drove him mad. His lover was a fucking tree. Eretria was captured, or worse – she was dead. And if she was, it was his fault.

“Amberle, please tell me what to do,” he whispered, still his head resting on the trunk. He pulled the glove from his hand and laid his bare hand on the Amberle’s bark. He felt a sensation under his palm. The bark went warm. At first, Wil didn’t think anything of it, but the feeling of warmth grew under his hand.  
“Amberle?” he asked, nervously. He looked up to the branches. Although it was not windy at all, the branches moved. The leaves rustled. The motion wasn’t caused by a soft breeze, it felt more like they shivered. Softly.

“Amberle, is that you?” Wil’s voice was now urging. He removed the glove from his other hand and caressed the trunk.  
It was clear now, the bark got warmer under his hands. The leaves shivered and the sound of the rustling became louder. And now Wil had a vision of Amberle. How she sat at the camp fire at night, shivering from the cold, a piece of rough cloth around her shoulders. Could trees feel cold?  
Wil was convinced that Amberle tried to connect with him.

“Amberle, what can I do for you? Can you talk to me?”

 _I’m talking to a tree, great,_ Wil thought. _No, I’m talking to my girlfriend._  
To the girl he loved. She couldn’t answer him as she used to, but she was in there. His Amberle. Trapped in the body of a tree her soul was alive and she reacted to his touches. Wil followed a sudden thought. He stood up and pressed himself on the tree. His hands, chest and ear. He heard a rushing in the trunk. The sound reminded him of the sea or the rushing of blood through human veins. It felt nice.  
‘Wil.’  
He didn’t hear his name. He felt it. He knew it was Amberle talking to him. Finally.  
The vision Amberle got from her ancestor must’ve been similar to what Wil received now. Maybe stronger, because Amberle’s voice was weak and sounded like she was talking to him half awake, half asleep. Wil felt the whisper like a soft breeze in his soul. Just his name and it was the best thing he’s ever felt. She was alive.

 _I can hear you, Amberle,_ he replied in his thoughts. _Please, please, please, talk to me…_  
‘Wil,’ she answered promptly. 

Wil was overwhelmed by emotions. His fingernails dug into the bark of Amberle’s trunk. Immediately the trunk started to shiver again. Wil was shocked by the heat of his actions and took his hands off the trunk, stroked the spots where his fingernails had left marks. He was afraid he may have hurt Amberle but obviously he was wrong. She seemed to like it.  
Suddenly there was a picture in his mind. A picture his imagination hadn’t brought up, Amberle forced it on him. It felt like a picture ripped out of a book. Disjointed and hard to understand. The snippet repeated itself and Wil saw Amberle. It was a memory of them having sex in the cave. Amberle’s taste was on his tongue again, hot and spicy. Intense. He could even hear her moans. It drove him crazy.

_Oh God, Amberle, what are you doing? I miss you so much._

She responded with a sigh, close to a moan.

_Amberle, fuck…_


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is smut. Because of course I can write that if I wish to. ;)

Within seconds, Wil’s penis got rock hard and throbbed in his pants. He gasped. “You can’t do this, Amberle, really!”, he whispered.  
She didn’t seem to do it on purpose, but that didn’t help Wil with the feelings of lust and his cheeks began to burn. 

Amberle hadn’t been his first girl, he’s had a couple of young girls back in Shady Vale. He’d been kind of admired by some of the girls for his elvish appearance, while the boys in town despised him. There hadn’t been any kind of a serious relationship and Amberle was the first who set him on fire. He had lusted for Eretria, yes, but it had been physical.  
Amberle was the first girl he wanted so bad it hurt. Why did she have to sacrifice herself for this?

Her body has been perfect. With skin as white and pure as milk, her breasts were small and perfect. He loved her legs, strong but delicate at the same time. Her long elven ears, which he had loved to kiss a little more, just… a little longer. If he only had known what was going to happen to her when they’d returned to Arborlon. His fingernails dug into the bark again and on his forehead the first pearls of sweat appeared and ran down his face. 

Like she felt his memories and shared the feeling of passion and lust, she sent him sounds of her moaning, how she had cried his name in the cave, before she had cum underneath him. Shivering and sensual. Scratching his back. Her legs pressed against his hips, pushing him deeper inside her.

 _Oh, Amberle,_ he thought, breathless. _I love you._

Wil couldn’t take this anymore. It was too much of a sensation to ignore it. It was a clear and chilling night, he was alone and Amberle fucked his mind.  
In a matter of seconds, he was out of his clothes. The feeling of the rough bark against his bare thighs and stomach was breath taking.  
“Amberle…!” he moaned while rubbing his erection. His cock was rock hard as he’d never experienced before. It was almost painful and Wil’s longing for release made him almost cry.  
“Wil,” Amberle whispered in his mind.  
“You drive me crazy,” Wil responded, already panting heavily.  
Lost in the moment’s heat Wil writhed against the trunk, while he pleasured himself. Amberle’s memories were as vivid as his own in his mind; he couldn’t stop whispering her name. He grabbed his erection harder and rubbed the shaft roughly and impatiently. The feeling was incredible and he felt the tension build in his belly.  
“Please,” she moaned silently, “once more…”

Wil’s vision blurred and the pictures in his head became frantic. Amberle begging for more was too much for him to take. He wanted her so bad, his belly burned.  
Then his cum squirted over the stone steps, his hands, the tree. Wil grunted and leaned his hand on the bark. His lips touched the rough texture… the feeling of loss and agony overthrew him. 

Amberle was here, with him. But he’s never felt so lonely in his entire life.


	4. Chapter 4

Wil’s choice to ride to Safehold wasn’t accepted by everybody but he’d made it already, back when Eretria potentially sacrificed herself to save him and Amberle from the Trolls. He was sure to do the right thing. The black horse he mounted went at high speed but Wil knew he had to rest two times before he arrived at Safehold. Travelling on his own was dangerous and maybe he set his own mission at risk, but there was no one he could’ve asked to accompany him.

Allanon was on Ander’s side and planned on tracking down Bandon, who obviously was overcome by some evil spirit or his own inner darkness. Nobody knew. Bandon had Dagda Mor’s sword in his hands and a lot of magical potential. He could be anywhere. Wil knew that Allanon was needed in Arborlon, because that was more important than Wil’s ride to save a rover girl from Trolls. In Allanon’s eyes, Eretria had finished her cause on this earth. Any search for her was just redundant. If there was a chance to forgive the Druid his actions; was there a chance for peace and understanding? Wil was clueless.

Ander as a king was busy now. His whole family was dead (or was a tree) and the Black Guard was without a Commander. Everything had to be set now and Ander was all by himself. Only Allanon could help. Wil didn’t know any of the Elves well enough to decide to stay in Arborlon with them. There was only Amberle, Allanon and Eretria. Even Ander wasn’t all that fond of him. A half-elf that corrupted his pure niece, and let her become what she was now.

Wil Ohmsford covered the bag with the Elfstones he wore around his neck. He could feel them, reacting to his touch. All he had was the horse, the stones and his despair over Amberle. And Eretria? Maybe. If he lost her too, there was only one really beloved (and humanoid) person left and it was his uncle Flick in Shady Vale. Even now that Wil was kind of a hero, Flick would totally lose it, if Wil showed up at his house. Telling him he used the stones. More than once. He, Amberle and Eretria may have saved the world but it hadn’t helped Shea Ohmsford. He died hated by his family. Poor and drunk.  
When Wil found Eretria alive, he would return with her to Arborlon. And after that, who knew where to go. He wanted to be a Healer once. If Bandon was fought and defeated he would maybe go to Storlog. 

The thought was painful. He had planned a life with Amberle. 

There had to be another way. A way to revive her. Set her free from her cruel duty. He remembered the moment his heart lifted when Amberle had talked to him in the Sanctuary. He remembered everything.   
Dawn was rising and Wil had to find a place to sleep. There was no village nearby and he had to prepare himself to sleep in the woods or a cave. Time had rushed past him like wind in his hair. He had to hurry.

*

It was pitch-black now and Wil was lucky to find a little secure cave. He had to go off track to find it but at least he could now hide in here. Artac stood outside. Wil had sparked a fire to warm himself as for the night was cold and moist. His camp fire was tiny but at least it brought some light into the cave. Wil had refilled his water hoses in a river nearby. His dinner has been a piece of hard cheese and half a loaf of brown bread. He was full and already felt sleepy. He lay under the blankets made of rough fabric, looking at the ceiling of the cave which was illuminated by the camp fire. He saw shadows dancing and twitching. Hypnotised by the sight of it he again thought of Amberle.

She had communicated with him. In pictures. And her voice was inside his head. There was a connection now between them, he could feel it. Amberle was silent now, he was too far away from Arborlon and he felt it. They were tied to one another. Him and the tree, in which Amberle… lived? Was her body alive? What had happened to her after she entered the Ellcrys?

Wil felt sick for a moment. Nobody knew what happened in or with the Ellcrys, but the Chosen ones who became the Ellcrys. And there was no possibility to ask her. Amberle could only communicate in memories or names, he supposed. He needed to know how she had transformed. Wil’s insides burned and twitched by the thought of releasing her. He knew he was being selfish about wanting his girlfriend back and choosing this path over protecting the Four Lands. Without the Ellcrys, the demons would rise again and a second war might be fatal for the Elven race. Even though the Dagda Mor was physically dead, their leader was dead, the demons would still be dangerous to everyone on this Earth. Wil played with his Elfstones in his hands. They glowed a little in the light of the fire. He knew they alone wouldn’t help to kill off every single demon. He was only half Elf and he was the only one who could use them. He thought about it. It was kind of stupid to think, that these three little stones were the only ones. But so far, Amberle, Allanon, and he were the only barrier between the Forbidding and the Four Lands. A great duty.

Nevertheless, under any circumstances, Wil wanted to have Amberle back. He wanted to touch her, kiss her. He was longing for her so bad that he felt his cheeks and thighs turning hot. He had seen what Amberle remembered of them. She had remembered their last couple of hours together. She had said his name in the Sanctuary, last night. She could express memories… bright memories. Wil stared at the ceiling of his hideaway and it turned into a canvas for his fantasies. He felt his penis harden in his pants. He tried to ignore it, but in the end he had to give in to the fantasies of making love to Amberle once again. Just once. He was aroused, his cheeks burnt like fire. With a rough motion he took off his pants, gripped his boner tight. Wil came just after a few seconds; biting his lip while moaning Amberle’s name. 

_Is that supposed to be my love life now?_ he thought, brushing back the strands of blond hair, sticking on his forehead. _A long distance relationship with a tree?_  
Wil fell asleep, tired and exhausted by his own pathetic thoughts and feelings. He dreamt of Safehold, the place where he would find Eretria. Hopefully alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading my fanfiction :)  
> And I want to add the biggest THANK YOU to my wonderful, awesome and badass beta reader jodygoroar. I send you hugs and kisses xxx


	5. Chapter 5

A full moon was shining over Arborlon.   
It was quiet in the palace, the Black Guard stood silently and motionless in the halls in front of doors and gates. Actually, Ander should’ve been in bed already, but he couldn’t sleep at all. His body felt exhausted, tired and dumb; his brain worked frantically. So many questions, but no answers. He was King of the Four Lands. A kingdom that was so big, so confusing. All Ander knew of his Kingdom was Arborlon and the lands of the Elves. His father in the end wasn’t much interested in the other races or how they lived. Where they lived. Eventine Elessedil was only concerned about the security of Arborlon. He would’ve never admitted it, but Eventine had grown tired. Tired and hollow. But with Arion, Ander’s brother, as an heir to the throne Eventine would have never resigned. That damn fool.  
Now everyone was dead. And Ander was left.

Ander was alone, he had nobody. His father, assassinated. His brothers, too. Not even Manx had been spared from the demons. Ander had to tighten his grip on the handrail of his balcony. The balcony was added to his bed chamber and he could see the Sanctuary and the Ellcrys, shining bright silver in the moonlight. He was drunk, like too often these days.

_Amberle._

He was so incredibly sorry for what had happened to her. Ander had thought of her as his own blood, his daughter. Her loss was shocking. She was there, but she didn’t talk to him. She didn’t talk with anyone. Allanon had tried later the day Wil had left and headed for Safehold. Ander was sure she had communicated with the Half Elf.   
Now, that Ander was king, he had imagined adopting Amberle, now that everything was fine again. The Dagda Mor was defeated, the Forbidding active. The Ellcrys’ Seed would’ve been delivered solemnly to Arborlon by Amberle, the Ellcrys would’ve healed… but now Amberle had been the Seed, and she turned into that monstrous, magic tree.  
Ander didn’t think about having his own children. He had wanted Amberle to be the crown princess of Arborlon. He was too young for his own children and he has always been single, ever since his affair with Diana Tilton.

Diana, this wonderful, brave and clever woman. He had never recovered from their break up and now he was King. It was expected of him to take a wife and father children to inherit the throne through the Elessedil dynasty. There was no way out. Of course all the young, unmarried girls of Arborlon now knew he was the most wanted bachelor. It was just a matter of time until he would drown in offers of young girls. He had been prince; the unwanted, last one, the one that would never be King, he had attended a lot of parties. He had seduced young girls, women, older women and even some elven boys alike. It was fun as long as he didn’t have to get into a serious relationship. He had lost his heart to Tilton, and with Tilton his heart had died.  
The war was ended; the elves had succeeded, but at what cost?

They had lost a lot of Elves and Elves never were much of a race that reproduced a lot. They’ve became more humanoid with the centuries and the loss of magic in their veins.  
Ander took the glass of mead and drank a sip. The honey wine looked like liquid Amber in the beams of moonlight. Alcohol was his only comfort.  
Allanon roamed the castle at night. He had helped, and still did; Ander trusted him, but he felt like the druid was cold blooded and utilitarian. He had sacrificed Amberle, and Allanon could read minds. It was creepy and Ander felt uncomfortable around him. 

They had talked this evening about the Bandon problem and Allanon had decided to take off soon to find his former student.  
Another topic that sucked. Bandon, of their own, had betrayed them. Ander didn’t know much about magic, but what Allanon had done to and with Bandon… he could’ve been really useful to humanity and the elven race, and he had slipped through Allanon’s fingers. Allanon had corrupted the fragile mind of a fragile boy. It was said that Bandon was driven by a force of Evil, but how did that happen?

There were two options. The first was that Bandon had been infected by Evil. Then the Ellcrys was useless, because this kind of Evil should’ve been banned by the barrier of the Ellcrys. The second was, that Bandon had born Evil within himself, and the Ellcrys was useless as well, because then Evil could thrive in this world, and it could expand in the world of Humans and Elves. 

Given one of those two theories, Ander concluded, Amberle had sacrificed her life for nothing.

King Ander Elessedil chugged the wine.

He needed to go to sleep. 

Nothing was solved with this war. It had become worse.


	6. Chapter 6

Eretria laid on a pile of dirty stinking rags that she had collected in the cell where the Trolls had put her. It was sticky, cold, humid and it stank. And it was so loud. There was blood in her hair, on her clothes and on her skin. It was just disgusting and she got sick from her own body odour.

She had lost every sense of time. Without seeing the Sun or the Moon, she was completely clueless if it was day or night, and how long she had been down here. Eretria felt like she had been trapped in here for an eternity now. She had been made into a weapon by the Troll King. A long time ago, Eretria hadn’t felt guilty for anything she had done to survive, but now she felt shame like a bitter taste on her tongue. She had killed Trolls and humans.

In the Arena.

Eretria convulsed in pain and sickness. She felt the bile coming up her throat and she had thrown up in the corner she used as a toilet. Instead of just killing her and letting her corpse rot on the floor, the Trolls had captured her and brought her to that place. She was showcased like a present. The face of the man, she’d never thought to see again, had burned itself in her brain. He had given her a choice: be his whore or be his amusement in battle. She didn’t think she had made the better one, in the end everything was exactly the same. She was a slave. Again. 

She had chosen the battle. Eretria remembered how she took the axe and the scimitar, had spit before his feet and took up the fight in the pit. Here in Safehold, in this labyrinth with no way out, there was this cage. A fighting pit. Trolls who lived here had built it from everything they could’ve used. The circle shaped pit was made of wood, metal, old gully covers, bricks, stones and barbed wire. They had hammered, soldered and screwed it.

There hadn’t been time to regret her decision. They had shoved her in the pit and locked the doors. She had seen scarred faces, and their yelling had felt unbearable in her ears. Eretria thought that she might’ve been afraid, there in the pit, before they had brought in her first contestant and she knew: she had to kill him quick. Her first kill had been easy. A young Troll; huge but dumb. She had slit his throat from one ear to the other in under a minute. Eretria still saw the fountain of blood before her eyes and she had to throw up again.  
This was the type of perverted decadence she’d never understand and it frightened her. There was a tiny voice in her head, telling her it was still better to kill than to get raped by a bastard like him. Or one of his men. They would kill her anyway. But if she died, she’d die with dignity, and on her own terms.

_We’ll come back for you, I promise._

Eretria clung on Wil’s last words to her. Still. The world hadn’t drowned in chaos and it hadn’t ended, which meant Wil and Amberle had been successful. Or could they have failed without notice? Eretria was deep underground, if there was a big War or total destruction she may have missed it.  
She believed in her denial. Wil and Amberle had made it safely to Arborlon.

Eretria hated clinging on things like hope. Until Safehold, until the Bloodfire she had finally believed herself to be a free woman. That there was hope for her to live her life like she wanted. But now she was again just a puppet in someone’s theatre.

There was a thought in Eretria’s mind. She could just get herself killed in the Arena. If Amberle and Wil didn’t come for her soon, she would let her life end. She had fought with grim determination to get away from the Rover life, from her rapist and captor Cephalo. She didn’t want to be a slave for the rest of her existence. There was more to life than obeying others. Or fearing to get married to some brutal or psychotic Rover ‘father’.   
Eretria fell asleep, exhausted and full of despair.

~

Amberle did not dream anymore.

She awakened. 

Everything felt old about her; hard and heavy. She wanted to open her eyes, but there were no eyes anymore. She opened her mind instead. She couldn’t see in the dark, all she could do was sense and hear. She felt her roots in the soil that grew deep under Arborlon and even under the ground of the Sea nearby. Her roots stretched through the Four Lands and reached to the farthest corners of the known world. She felt the cold and wet ground in which she was embedded. She heard the birds singing, felt their nests in her branches. She felt the wind, tingling her leaves and the sun warming her.

She heard a voice from outside, a familiar elven voice.

She had dreamed of Wil. That he had been with her and told her he was about to rescue Eretria.

_Wil._

_Eretria._

These two names anchored her soul, her being in the mortal world, she felt it. Without these two names she would disappear. So, Amberle clung on Wil and Eretria and did not. Let. Go. She thought of Wil and his tenderness, his kisses. Had he really been here, and had he touched her new body?  
It had to be like that. She still felt a tingling sensation where his fingernails had scratched her. He couldn’t have been gone for long. Now that she was made to live for an Eternity, days felt like blinks of an eye.

_Wil._

She hadn’t told him, that she was the one to bring the Ellcrys back to life. She hadn’t told him until the end that there was no hope, no future for them as a couple. No time to make anything better. To get to know each other better. Wil Ohmsford was himself still and she was a tree. She would be the Ellcrys forever and slowly lose herself. The next elf, in a thousand years or so, would come and take her place. Sacrifice themselves, become a tree and maintain the Forbidding.  
The injustice would continue.  
Amberle regretted her choice.

She wanted to be an herself again. She wanted to lay in his arms, because it was the place where she belonged. And she wanted to tell Eretria, she wasn’t afraid that she might like it.  
Amberle Elessedil screamed silently and her trunk shivered. Her roots quivered deep in the soil.

There was a heartbeat. A human heartbeat.

*

After a few hours of sleep Eretria was awakened by rough shakings. The troll who took care of her dragged her onto her feet. His face was already hidden behind the Troll masks. She didn’t understand what he said because he had a solecism and there was always saliva dripping down his chin. He was incredibly disgusting.   
Without any fight, Eretria let him shove her through the dark tunnels of Safehold. There were torches every now and then which lit the corridors. Eretria was hungry and her legs were weaker and weaker.

A few minutes later, they stood in front of a metal door. Guarded by three Trolls. They shouted and barked some ‘hello’s, at least Eretria thought these sounds would resemble some kind of greetings. She had no knowledge of Troll language and could only guess at what they said.   
The door swung open and Eretria was shoved on the other side. There were no torches here, instead the room was flooded with light through stain-glass windows. It reminded Eretria of the room of the Bloodfire. When Eretria saw the patterns in the glasses, meters above her head, showering her head and shoulders in light, she almost started to cry. The world lived.

Looking around in the room she was trapped in now, she realized there were Troll women living here. There was a soft sound of flowing water in the background. And it didn’t stink. Eretria took a deep breath and looked at the women around her. Troll women looked like the male trolls. Stocky, deformed, yellow skin. But unlike the males, they didn’t wear masks. At least three of them were watching Eretria closely and she started to feel uncomfortable about it. Maybe she looked as shitty as she felt.  
The first Troll woman, wearing leather trousers and a rough blouse, approached her. Eretria didn’t step back from her as the woman touched her, even though the scarred face repelled her.

“Do you want to wash yourself?” the women asked her.  
Eretria lifted her eyebrows. “You can speak my tongue?” she asked.  
The woman nodded. “Yes, some of us do. We learned it from Nephron.” She talked of this man like he was a God. There was awe in her voice. There was anger rising in Eretria’s stomach, but she kept calm and said nothing. “He said, you have to bathe. And we can give you something to eat.”

“Thank you” was all Eretria could manage to say. The Troll woman took her arm and she let it happen. The other women followed them. Behind a lintel that was veiled by curtains, there were stairs made of stone. Eretria followed the stair case and entered a room that was completely covered in water. A water pipe from high above was the water supply.   
“Why shall I clean myself?” Eretria asked.  
“Nephron wants to see you,” the woman said. “By the way, my name is Zara.” 

Eretria didn’t shake her hand. It was frightening how old Zara looked, but her eyes were vital and vibrant blue. She could be 20 by the look of her eyes and 50 by the looks of her body. It wasn’t nice to think about her like that, plus her deformation looked manmade like Nephron’s. Her skull seemed to have a dent. What a terrible word.  
Eretria knew that the Trolls here where the descendants of those people who had been exposed to poisonous gasses and other terrible weapons in the Great Wars. These people had birthed babies either dead or deformed. These people had fled into the mountains and ruins of their cities and didn’t show up usually. The shame of their appearance and failure must’ve turned into distrust, then fear and then hatred. And now they lived in similar structures as the Rovers. The deformations due to the poisons still seemed to run in the families and clans. Maybe the poison was still out there, like the Elven guard who had died from the gasses; burned alive. Eretria shuddered.  
“I would like to be alone for a minute, is that okay?”, she asked Zara.

“Yes, I think so”, Zara responded. She seemed to feel offended by Eretria’s denial of a friendship. “But you won’t have much time. Bathe quickly, we need to groom and feed you before Nephron comes here.”  
“Thanks.”

After Zara had climbed the staircase and disappeared, Eretria took off her clothes and slid into the cold water. She froze immediately but at least she could have some last moments alone. She could wash off the shame herself. There was a piece of cloth which she used to wash her body; scrubbing off the blood of two Trolls and a human male.  
 _Amberle, Wil.., come quick,_ she thought. _I have to get out of here!_

*

Wil had found the entrance of Safehold. He could’ve seen the ruins of the big bridge – of a river that was long ago run out – already from the distance. It felt like years since he left here with Amberle, though it was only a few days ago. Now he had to descend into the labyrinth again and hope to find Eretria alive. He had promised to save her. He had promised it…

He wasn’t sure if he could find the Bloodfire again. Eretria had been the map. Now he could only hope that the Elfstones would help him.  
“Come on, guys”, he murmured and pressed the cold blue stones against his lips. “Help me.”

_And you, Eretria,_ he thought, _you better be alive or I’ll have to kill you!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys,   
> so this chapter was a little longer than the first ones; I think I will keep it that way. (About 1.500 - 3.000 words)  
> I hope you enjoyed this one, the next will be rough chapter for Eretria lovers (;  
> And there's of course muchmuch more to come!
> 
> xx


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS CHAPTER (plus the following) CAN BE TRIGGERING IF YOU'RE SENSITIVE ABOUT SWEARING OR SEXUAL ASSAULT.  
> Do NOT read this chapter if these warnings trigger you.

Eretria wasn’t the kind of girl that was easily scared. The years she had spent with the Rover family had steeled her, had made her untouchable. She had built up a strong wall around her soul, so that nobody could sneak over it and see that she was just a normal girl; that she wanted to be protected, loved. A girl that wanted to know where she came from, who she was. Cephalo had tried to take it all from her and he had almost made her a monster. When Wil and Amberle had stepped into her life, it had changed. They had broken down the barrier. She knew now that is was okay to be weak. To wish for something. To dream.

She stood in front of Nephron. This bastard. She wore her full battle dress, but they had taken away her axe and the knives. The woman in Nephron’s harem had told her what would happen to her now. She wanted to barf.  
Nephron, Cephalo’s younger brother, slouched on his so-called throne and didn’t even look at her. He wore his Troll outfit without a mask. He had a scar on his face that deformed his features across from his forehead to his chin. His nose was broken and it seemed like a bit of it was missing through the scar that must have been caused by slashing of a blade. He drank wine out of a cracked chalice.

“You know, Eretria”, he started, still not looking in her direction, “I’ve decided different about you.” 

“You belonged to my brother, and my brother is dead, you say. And because I’m Cephalo’s last beloved member of the blood line… I think I’ve inherited you. You’re good in the Arena but I’m more interested in your bedroom skills now.” Nephron tried to smile with his scarred lips. “After all these Troll cunts I’d enjoy a human one again.” 

Eretria gagged. She remembered why Cephalo had banned Nephron out of his Rover community. Nephron had raped some of Cephalo’s ‘daughters’ – like Eretria had been a ‘daughter’ – and even Cephalo’s two wives. When the body of one of the younger ‘daughters’ was found nearby the camp Cephalo had to do something about his psychotic brother. The girl had been raped, beaten up and strangled. A thing Nephron seemed to enjoy; strangling young girls. Nephron was a sadistic asshole and Eretria despised him even more than Cephalo.  
She shook hair out of her face and looked at Nephron with narrow eyes.

“And what exactly makes you so sure I won’t slit your throat?” she asked calmly.

Nephron’s head bounced back like he had received a slap, then he finally looked at her. Under his glance Eretria regretted her sassy remark. She had lived with Nephron long enough to know better than to provoke him.  
He stood up and Eretria froze. She saw something in his eyes, one blue, one black. She saw his eyes glowing like Cephalo’s, when he got angry. Or was it madness? She quickly thought of her options. The room was too small to duck away from him or even start an attack by herself. Her will to survive burned in her chest. He hadn’t tied her up, because maybe he thought she couldn’t fight with bare hands. But since their last physical run-in she had learned. She wasn’t the little girl anymore. To make him feel secure about his assumptions that she was harmless without knives, she let him push her back into a corner of the small room. She put a frightened look in her eyes. Her heart hammered against her chest as he put his hand on her throat and strangled her.

“Just try it, you little whore. You have only one try for it. If you mess it up…”, he hissed. His breath stank of rotten meat and sour wine. “Then I will slit you open, from your dirty little whore cunt to the chin. With just one swing. You understand?” Eretria gasped. life depending on not provoking him any further. She had taken it too far with just one sentence.  
“Yes, I do,” she said. He let go of her throat. Eretria sank against the wall and panted heavily.  
“You know, Eretria, I was there when Cephalo bought you.” He said it while playing around with a torch like it was a little boy’s toy. He turned around and his deformed mouth smirked. “You were maybe… four or five years old and you came from… down here. Funny, huh? Now you’re back home.”

Eretria suddenly felt dizzy. “What..?”, she murmured, still leaning in the corner where he had choked her. Nobody had ever told her, where she had come from, or when, or how she was sold to Cephalo. She had made up a story herself to tell to other people and imagined a fairy-tale to tell herself every night before she went to bed. Never had she ever heard the story, she knew by heart and kept telling herself out there in the starless nights. Cephalo had never negated her ‘official’ version. That her parents had sold her.  
“Oh yes”, Nephron said. His dirty brown hair swirled around as he started to turn around on his own axis, like dancing, the torch still in his hands. Eretria couldn’t decide if he was really drunk or on some kind of drug. 

“I have seen your parents. Cephalo had to take you out of their arms. It was a tragedy.”

His words were like punches in her stomach. She wanted him to tell her the whole story, the story of her family, but she knew why he started telling her so many things. He wanted to make her obedient. He wanted her to obey every single word he said. Just every little piece of information. Eretria wouldn’t let him do that. I need to stay strong, she told herself.  
His next sentence made her fears come true. “You know, if you’re a good girl now, I will maybe tell you something more about your parents. Take your clothes off, I want to see you.” 

Eretria didn’t care much about nudity. Cephalo had taken even that from her: some kind of modesty. She had lost her virginity early to Cephalo. He didn’t even have to rape her. She had consented so it would be over and her virginity or ‘virtue’ was no longer subject of bets in the community. There was nothing left about her body that felt embarrassing. Her body was a vessel; for the bloodfire and for men. It was just a shell in which she hid her soul. And as long as she could keep her dreams and hopes a secret from Nephron, there was nothing left to take. She would sadly get over a sexual assault pretty easily. It shouldn’t be like that. 

She had chosen combat to live, but Nephron even wanted to take her pride and strength from her. He wouldn’t get it. He could rape her; his men could rape her. She would never belong to anyone again. Not her body. One day she would find someone to own her soul. 

Everything inside Eretria cried out to Wil and Amberle, her friends, the only people that ever truly loved her. The time with them had been over too soon. She still hoped for them to come save her. If she couldn’t save herself now. She had to survive. Somehow. 

While Eretria took her clothes off without any shown emotion, she felt anger and doubt in her stomach. She didn’t know why her friends hadn’t shown up yet. She didn’t know what maybe had come into their way. And as long as these two didn’t come for her rescue, she would have to survive on her own. Or end her life on her own. There was no way she’d be forced back into slavery. Never. She would get free today. Or die trying.


	8. [This Chapter contains a RAPE SCENE]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE NOTE:  
> CHAPTER 8 CONTAINS SCENES OF RAPE.
> 
> If you're sensitive to this kind of scenes, are survivor or otherwise triggered by scenes of sexual assault, abuse or sexual violence,  
> PLEASE DO NOT READ THIS CHAPTER.

Wil had thought a lot about when to descend to the catacombs. At day, so he thought, the Trolls down there would be more likely to awaken. On the other hand, it was pitch-black down there most of the time in most corners. How should these creatures down there know if it was day or night? Did they even have their own rhythm? He definitely needed a torch. He could barely move freely without seeing his own feet on the ground. Eventually he decided to go down there, as soon as possible. He couldn’t forgive himself if something happened to Eretria while he was outside here waiting and hesitating. Something was wrong with Eretria, something was about to happen. He felt it. 

He climbed down the stairs, he just had climbed up a few days ago; it must’ve been four or five days. If Eretria was alive she was maybe in bad physical condition. Or she was totally thrilled and alive. He could imagine both. 

He and Eretria, it could’ve become something. She was damn sexy, wicked and a fighter even with a gentle heart. She would never admit that but Wil new better. She was brave and compassionate and cared about other people. But she had mistaken his trust more than just one time. He was friends with her, because she had atoned already and she had gained his and Amberle’s trust… but he just could never be a hundred percent sure of her. She had almost sacrificed her life for Amberle – but... for Amberle. Not him. And Wil had found his great love in Amberle and these feelings for the Elven Princess, this endless love overtopped the still flaming passion between him and Eretria. And there was still this feeling between Amberle and Eretria. Whatever had happened between them, Wil was not included. Eretria was a weird girl. Enigmatic and beautiful. 

Wil took a final deep breath, lit his torch and made his first step into the labyrinth.

*

Sometime later, Wil was devastated. Without a map he didn’t find the way. He leaned on the wall, it felt humid and was painted by people before the Great Wars. He had to take some deep breathes. He had suspected he wouldn’t find the way without Eretria and the map inked on her body. Discouraged, Wil took the Elfstones out of the bag and started talking to them.

“Come on, please help me. I need to find Eretria and bring her to Amberle.” He couldn’t bear the thought of losing her, too.

*

Eretria thought of the last person she had slept with, and that person had been Wil.  
It was the only way to cope with what Nephron started doing to her now. She stood there, stiff and frozen, while he was watching her closely, squeezing her breasts so hard it hurt.  
“You have nice tits. The last time I saw you naked you were really skinny.” He pinched her nipple and it got hard under his touch. Of course Nephron took Eretria’s physical reaction as a sign of sexual approval. His grin was disgusting.  
“Well, well. I always knew you’re an always ready cheap whore. You like it rough?” 

Eretria was silent, narrowing her eyes to slits and thought of something nice. Of Wil’s touches. He hadn’t been rough with her. She had never experienced tenderness in all these years she had to sell her body for food, shelter or loot. Nobody had ever been tender to her. She knew she was punished with a very sensitive body that responded to practically everything. Sometimes she just had to think about sex and had an orgasm from it. Of course she could now stop thinking about Wil to make her body shut up, but she could just bear all of this when she thought about those gentle touches. Wil’s gentle touches.

Or Amberle. She remembered the bath in Pykon and Amberle’s milky white and pure skin, that surely would have felt like silk under her fingertips. She would’ve loved to touch her. In the clear water of the pool she could’ve seen Amberle’s soft pink nipples. It almost drove Eretria to despair. Thinking like that of the only two friends she had. Loving both more than she should.

“Answer me”, Nephron hissed in her ear, menacing. He punished her for her silence with twisting her nipple around, so hard she had to cry. “Tell me you’re a fucking whore!”

“Yes, Nephron, I’m a fucking whore,” Eretria tried to act like she was passionate about him assaulting her. She hoped he would believe it, because she didn’t know how long she could take it. He had to think she was passionate and scared at the same time. She had to buy some time to think of a plan. No longer thinking about Wil and Amberle, she had to survive. Had to flee. Had to kill. She was really quick and agile, but would she be strong enough to defeat him?

_No doubts,_ she told herself, _with doubt, you will fail!_

“Good girl”, Nephron said. He was definitely horny now. Again, he choked her. Hard. Not hard enough to actually make her short of air, but she felt the pressure on her throat and she had to gag violently. She had to act soon, or otherwise she would be forced into a position she could no longer escape from. Nephron’s other hand reached down between her legs, roughly parting them. Panic was added to Eretria’s fear to choke. And she felt shame. Her eyes burnt with tears, but she was brave and blinked them back. Nephron would love to see her cry, but she couldn’t let his horniness become rampant.

Nephron moaned as he parted Eretria’s labia and inserted two fingers into her pussy. He was rough and it felt like Eretria had to rip apart. Her heart was beating heavily against her chest. She was almost trapped, she had to think of something… with Nephron’s fingers down there she couldn’t kick him. It was a bad situation and all she could think of was breaking his neck or giving him a hard knock on his forehead. But how?  
The adrenaline made her feel edgy.

“You killed your own parents, Eretria Blackthorne. Your mother, your father and your baby brother. You annihilated your bloodline.”

He whispered it while he thrust his fingers into her. Eretria almost collapsed at his words. Her heart cramped.

“I don’t know how you did it, but you sat between their corpses and wept. Cephalo took you, because he knew what you are. You’re a Child of the Ar-“ 

Nephron didn’t get any further before his voice turned into a disgusting sound of bubbling and blood sprayed into Eretria’s face. It splat on her throat, her chest, between her breasts. Nephron’s hands were still on her, clinging onto life, but then he collapsed and took her down with him. She fell on the dying man and started panicking. She tried to escape, get away from him. She had seen a lot of men die. But this was too much. Two knives stuck in Nephron’s throat, deep to the hilt. His mad eyes stared at her. One blue, one brown.

“Eretria!”, someone shouted. Eretria looked up. There was someone standing in front of her. A boy. With eyes so blue as the cloudless sky and wheat blond hair. 

“Wil?” she heard herself ask. “Wil?!”


	9. Chapter 9

It was early in the morning when Ander felt the eruptions. He started up and ran to the balcony. From here he was able to see how the Ellcrys’ branches shivered behind the dark blue of the sunrise. 

“Oh shit”, he murmured and ran back into his chamber where he grabbed black trousers and a shirt. Two Elves of the Black Guard stormed in and caught him closing his fly. “King Ander, there’s trouble in the Sanctuary!”

“I can see that”, he stated, aggressively. “I’m coming, go get Allanon!”

“The Druid is already at the Ellcrys, he was the one who sent us,” the Elf on the left told him.

Ander sighed, unnerved, and fastened his belt. Allanon had allures. ‘I’m three hundred years old, your rules don’t appeal to me!’, Ander thought.  
“And you didn’t think of it yourselves to inform me so that the Druid has to give you orders?!” he asked sharply. Ander slipped in his boots and laced them up, took his harness and a knife. You never know what’s coming after you, he thought.

On their way to the Sanctuary they felt a constant rhythm of eruptions under their feet. There was a shrieking noise in Ander’s head and he didn’t know where it came from. It was a painful noise, it stung behind his eyes and for a short moment, Ander’s sight went black. Finally, they arrived in the Sanctuary where Elves of the Black Guard, the new gardener and Allanon waited. The Druid had already taken the gloves off his hands and touched the Ellcrys. His scarification on neck and arms glowed in deep red. Ander heard a humming coming from Allanon. Did he just use magic on his niece?!

Ander stepped forward loudly. The Ellcrys was the centre of the earthquakes and the shrieking intensified.  
“Allanon!” Ander shouted. The Druid didn’t move.

‘Uncle Ander, make him stop!’ 

Ander looked around. Nobody else seemed to notice the voice that had addressed him. It was just in his head, like the shrieking before. It was Amberle! It had to be! There was no time for discussion now. Ander ran forward and tore off one of Allanon’s hands from the bark. Instantly, the shrieking noise died off; same with Allanon’s marks.  
“Stop it, Allanon. You’re hurting her!” Ander shouted. He was surprised by his own temper.

The Druid, dark and lithic, became angry. “The Ellcrys is going mad, Ander! Amberle is going mad! She’s rooting herself out. She has to be calmed down!”  
Ander’s face twisted with anger. “By forcing magic on her?! Are you crazy? By the Gods, Allanon! Go! I will talk to you later. You won’t enter the Sanctuary anymore.”  
“You can’t be serious, King Ander. I wanted to help!”

“Then go after your mad Druid offspring and defeat him! Allanon, I’m fucking serious. You may be a powerful being, but I’m King here and I decide what happens to the Ellcrys and Amberle.”

Allanon’s dark eyes pierced into Ander’s blue ones. Then he straightened himself and retreated. “You are dismissed!” Ander said and ended the argument for the moment. 

Allanon’s black cloak blew behind him as he went through the door. “King Ander, Amberle must not fight against her destiny! She accepted it and it has to stay like that!”  
The door slammed shut behind Allanon. Everybody breathed out in relief. Still, in the soil beneath their feet the roots of the Ellcrys seemed to stir, but the earthquakes finally died completely.

‘Thank you.’

Again, the voice in his head. Ander looked around. “Two of you stay here, same for Ken!” Ken, the new Gardener and two Elves of the Black Guard stayed with Ander while the rest went out of the Sanctuary. Ken was Went’s son and had taken his father’s place after he had been killed by the Changeling.   
“When did the eruptions start?” Ander asked Ken. The boy looked shocked. Everyone had assumed that life would be more normal again after the Ellcrys had been saved, but nobody had thought of the consequences of such a sacrifice. The last Elf must’ve sacrificed themselves more than a thousand years ago. Had their ancestors retained this knowledge? And if so, where?

“Yesterday in the evening there was a movement in the tree. First I thought I must’ve dreamed it because nobody else had noticed a change. But then, in the early morning, two hours ago, it started. At first, there was a whisper in the air, it sounded like someone was singing… and then suddenly, the tree started screaming, the roots started to stir, the ground started shaking. In the back of the Sanctuary some of the tiles broke. All of the memorial candles fell over and I started to blow out the fire… yeah,” Ken took a deep breath. He was an exact image of his father. He looked overworked and tired. “Then Allanon came with the Guard. He tried to calm down the Ellcrys, but he just made it worse.” He looked helpless. Ander touched Ken’s shoulder. 

“You did a good job, Ken. Nobody here could’ve made it better than you. Don’t worry. I will try to talk to the Ellcrys now.”  
Ken nodded. “What should I do when it happens again?”

“You will call me”, Ander said firmly. “And just me. Until further notice, Allanon isn’t welcome in the Sanctuary without my permission.”  
Ander hated the thought of Allanon harassing Amberle like this.

Ken nodded again. “I’m in my chamber, when you need me, King Ander.”  
“Alright. Try to rest a little more, Ken. It will be fine.”

Ander was alone now with the Guard – and Amberle. His heart started to race as he climbed the stairs up to the door of the Ellcrys. He touched the bark.  
“Amberle? It’s fine, Allanon is gone.”

It felt like the tree was relaxing. ‘Uncle Ander, … he hurt me.’

“Shhh, hush. He won’t come into the Sanctuary again, if you don’t want him to.”  
Ander couldn’t think of a reason why Allanon had come to the opinion that he had to force magic upon Amberle. Amberle sounded upset.  
‘I’m sorry, Ander. But it hurts so much. And he’s still there.’

“Who is still here? And what is aching?” Amberle was talking nonsense.  
‘Is Wil here? I need to see him… can you bring him to me?’  
Ander stroke the bark and laid his head against the trunk. “Keep calm, Amberle. One step at a time. Wil is gone, he’s going after the Rover girl to save her. He will be back soon, I’m sure of it. Now, please tell me, what happened? You’ve slept for a week now. What is hurting you, how can I help?”  
Ander heard Amberle sighing in his head. He knew this sound so well… She sounded like she was about to cry. Could trees cry? ‘When Wil is back, tell him to come here… I’m tired…’

“No, stay awake! You have to tell me what’s wrong!”

‘Everything stings and hurts me… I can feel the roots, they are now my fingers and toes and it just hurts so much… Everything is so stiff… my body, Ander. My physical body. It’s grown together with the tree. The tree is draining it.’

“I know, sweetheart. I know it must hurt you… Can I help you?” Of course, Ander didn’t know a thing about how it felt to become a tree, but he needed to calm Amberle down. He memorized that Amberle’s body was still there and hadn’t dissolved as he had imagined it. Nobody knew how the transformation from Elf to Ellcrys happened. He needed to do some research. After he had given the Druid a lecture.  
Amberle was silent.

“Who is still there?”

Now the voice in Ander’s head became frightened. ‘I saw him. Bandon. He is at the Black Henge. And the Dagda Mor is in him. Ander, he has to be stopped, or else he will kill us all. Evil is here!’ 

Ander didn’t feel the ground under his feet as he ran back to the Palace. Allanon couldn’t hesitate any longer. He had to defeat Bandon. And the Dagda Mor with him.


	10. THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS DEATH OF A MINOR CHARACTER

Amberle didn't get used to being a tree easily. 

She could feel both of her bodies. The one with fluids flowing through her wooden skeleton and the other one, which was still pumping blood through her veins.

And now she could see. She had awakened from nightmares and lovely dreams and then had fallen asleep again. Most of the time she wasn't awake for long, she was tired all the time, but in this night she had seen things that hadn't been a nightmare at all. They had been real.

The shock of learning her human body was still intact and alive had struck her hard, she had cried and the pain was incredible, but then she realized she could _see_. It was no sight with eyes but through her branches and roots. She could move her roots and branches. The ends of both could feel and make her see things. The pictures formed in her mind, black and white. 

And she had seen Bandon, with the Black Eyes of the Dagda Mor controlling him, and Bandon had done terrible things. The sword of the Black Druid was blazing in her vision. What Amberle had seen was so terrible she couldn't comprehend. Amberle had been upset and then Allanon had come to soothe her. He hadn't listened to her, he had hurt her even more. Amberle's senses felt for her human body.

She had been lucky to have Ander who had come to help her. Her wonderful Uncle.  
Amberle cried silently. Just the feeling of her body, being pierced by roots of her new body calmed her down. As long as it would be alive, had a beating heart, was connected to the Ellcrys, she had hope.

As a tree, motionless and dumb, she could not help her loved ones. She may have trapped/ the demons, but Bandon was out there. Summoning even more Evil.  
Allanon had told her to not regret. But she did. There was nothing she could do. Her roots stirred and she cried for Wil. 

_This tree is useless._

*

Blood trickled down the Black Blade and pooling in a tiny puddle on the dead soil. The crying of the baby had stopped abruptly and Bandon heard a bubbling sound. If Bandon had still been master of his own body he would have vomited. The sight of this severed tiny head would always haunt him. His body laughed cruelly, then Bandon's hands drew runes and symbols with the blood of the dead elven child. His voice summoned things in a language he did not understand. The setting sun bathed the scenery of the Black Henge in red light. The words sounded like an archaic and terrifying song, and Bandon couldn't feel anything. He didn't feel his lips or fingers nor his tongue. He didn't even feel the wind blowing around him. He could just see through his eyes.

The Dagda Mor tortured him. Now the demon wasn't in his head alone, he had taken Bandon's body. Bandon should've told Allanon. He may be a terrible teacher, and Bandon had acted like a bratty child, but maybe, just maybe, Allanon could've stopped the slow Invasion. But now it was all in vain. The Dagda Mor had killed. With Bandon's hand. A baby was taken away and killed by his hands and nothing could ever erase this from his mind. This child could still be alive if Bandon had trusted Allanon. 

He hadn't wanted to be used by Allanon. He had never wanted to feel imprisoned again, he had wanted to be free. Master of his own universe. And now he was the toy of an ancient evil creature. It all could've been prevented. It was his fault alone. The Dagda Mor had taken his mind, made him attack Catania and killed an Elf from the Black Guard. He had tried to kill Ander and Allanon. The Dagda Mor must've had this plan from the beginning. In case of the death of his body he needed to find a host for his mind. And on the night he was killed and the Ellcrys revived, he had found Bandon at the Black Henge and taken him. 

His regret may come late, but now Bandon knew that being controlled and educated by Allanon had been the better option. Of course Allanon had tried to dominate him and regiment him, but with Allanon his dark side hadn't been used by Evil. Bandon's parents hadn't locked him up for nothing. He always had these dark visions and behaved weird. He had tortured the neighbor's cats and finally had torched their farmhouse. He had never been normal.

And now he was just nothing. A vessel. The Dagda Mor had infiltrated him, taken his body and surely Bandon's soul would have vanished if he didn't cling to his life; and his guilt.

 _Remorse won't help you, Elvenboy, it whispered in his mind._ The Dagda Mor was talking to him. _You are lost and forsaken. You will see me drench the World's soil with the blood of Elves, humans, Trolls, Gnomes and every living creature._

The body of the dead baby was absorbed by the earth and a hot wind joined the sound of the Ancient tongue. The ground shook and divided, leaving a crack. Beneath the Black Henge, an old cavern appeared. A prison. _If you think that I spare your life because I'm not able to kill you, be informed. You are wrong. You are still of use for me, Bandon._

Bandon looked down in the abyss. Was that the Forbidding?

If this was the Forbidding and it was now open... the Ellcrys had become useless! 

A thin line of smoke rose from the bottom of the pit. Shapeless. The smoke formed before the Dagda Mor and snarled, ‘‘You have called me upon your service, Master? Your sacrifice will help me rise to old power, thank you.“

The Dagda Mor stood motionless and looked at his new servant. This creature would help him take the girl and bring the Apocalypse. He just hoped it would be more efficient than the Changeling. 

Which girl? Bandon thought, filled with terror.

A cruel laughter came from his lips. _The girl that means the world, Bandon._


	11. Chapter 11

„You killed him!“ Eretria screamed at Wil.

Wil looked at her with a blood stained face and totally confused expression.

„Yes, indeed I did! I saved your life! Is that a way to thank me? He wanted to rape you!“ His behavior and gestures went from relief to anger. He didn't even realize she was naked in front of him. She shivered.

„Wouldn't be the first guy!“ she hissed.

„We don't have time to talk! We have to get out. Get dressed!“ Wil said in a rough tone, while he took her clothes that were scattered across the floor and threw them in Eretria's direction.

„My knives... they have to be here somewhere...“, Eretria muttered, puzzled. But Wil, still fuelled by adrenaline and anger just yanked the daggers out of Nephron's body, cleaned them on the dead man's clothing and gave them to Eretria.

„I have to knives with me. We will make it somehow, and now get dressed. Please.“

Eretria got into her clothes as fast as she could. As long as she was in this panic mode she could still walk and fight. But she had to stay strong. _Don't think, just run,_ she told herself.

There was a static in her ears and in her mind there was just one word that kept her upright. Her last name.

 _Blackthorne.  
Blackthorne.  
Blackthorne..._  
…

Wil grabbed her arm as soon as she was in her harness. She was hectic and her still sensitive nipples rubbed against the rough fabric but she had to focus on survival. Wil had killed Nephron, they had to flee quick without any trace. The trolls would wonder what had happened to him and then realize that Eretria was gone...

„Come!“ Wil commanded. His blond hair fell into his face and in his blue eyes there was a glance. It was determination.

Eretria wondered; Where is Amberle? She wanted to ask but there was no time. She had to wait with that until they were out of this place, and probably a few miles from here... At first she wanted to ask Wil if there was a chance to save the Troll women but reality hit her. Down here, there were some rules she knew and they reminded her of the Rover families. Without her men or owners, the women would be raped and killed. By other men who weren't their husbands or slave owners. Maybe it was better to leave them here.

A blue light coming from Wil's closed fist let Eretria focus on him again. He guided her out of Safehold, the world outside the bubble Wil created with the Elfstones seemed opaque.

„The elfstones make us invisible“, he said softly, „I have no idea how that works.“ His face was stiff and Eretria saw that the Elfstones started to burn his hand again. It smelled like burning flesh and she felt terrible for him. Wil took the pain without any comment but she knew he suffered from it a lot. When they got out of here alive, she would take care of his hand. She owed him. He had saved her miserable ass two times. She maybe had given Amberle and Wil time down here but it didn't weigh in enough in her eyes. He may have killed Nephron but he hadn't known what Nephron wanted to tell her. They had to exchange news as soon as possible.

They could sneak around most of the Troll guards but some of them were uncomfortably near even though they took some short cuts. Eretria heard their snarly voices and grunting sounds. No wonder Nephron had become one of them. These animals were his real brothers, not even Cephalo had been so incredibly disgusting.

When Eretria and Wil came around a corner they couldn't avoid a fight with the Troll guards. Two of them blocked the way out. Eretria sighed. The trolls seemed alarmed as if they had sensed that something was wrong here. Their snouts got into the air, sniffing.

 _Oh shit, oh holy fucking mother of shits,_ Eretria thought. _We'll be killed._ But she drew her daggers as silently as she could. One of the Trolls had a drum and he started smacking it in a rhythm that probably meant 'HUMANS IN THE DUNGEON!' Wil sighed as well and then he nodded to Eretria and he let his hand with the Elfstones down. Suddenly, the translucent veil around Eretria and Wil faded.

 

*  
I'm so screwed, Wil thought right the moment the Elfstones went dark. But Eretria was quick, really quick. Even before their opponents could react Eretria had attacked one of them. Wil saw blood splattering all over the floor while he was still trying to get a grip on his knife. His hand hurt too much from the Elfstones and he felt the blisters burst and ooze.

Wil knew he was no knight nor hero nor even a warrior and without Eretria he would totally be Troll feast already. He didn't even have time to feel happiness to find her alive, everything was hectic and he panicked. He had saved her from a rape, surely, but her reaction felt so wrong... The drum Troll ran towards him and all Wil was able to do was to raise his hands with the scimitars in it.

„YOU IDIOT!“, Eretria cried. Her face was stunningly beautiful and she was as quick and her moves were as smooth as a cat's. „LOWER THE WEAPONS, YOU STUPID FUCK!“ 

Wil obeyed and took down his ends, diving under the Troll‘s first club attack. With a fast twist of his body Wil got behind the Troll and rammed his scimitars in the Troll‘s sides. He hoped he had aimed for the right spots -as he had learned from his medicinal studies- and the Troll would be fatally wounded and bleed out quick. Wil felt a dull pain in his back and when he looked up he saw that Eretria had used him as a human ramp to reach the Troll's head. She now hung on the creature and stabbed him right in the neck. The shrieking was painful in Wil's ears, but the Trolls just fell to the ground, twitching and bleeding. From afar Wil and Eretria could hear more drums and calls.

„Who's the idiot, bitch? You could have killed him a little less noisy!“ Wil screamed at Eretria. He shoved her from the dead body and the moment she turned around and looked him in the eyes he saw so much anger and hatred he felt a moment of cold fear in his stomach.

„Oh shut up, Elf boy, without me you'd be dead by now!“

„Without you I wouldn't even be here again!“ he hissed and immediately regretted his harsh words.  
There was a silence now he couldn't bare, while they took their weapons from the bodies. Wil knew now there was no way to use the Elfstones again. They had become useless for the moment after the Trolls could've seen through the veil and now every Troll in this labyrinth would hunt them down.

„RUN!“ he said. And they ran. Eretria behind Wil. He could remember the way this time – the last time he hoped – and if they were able to sprint for a minute or two, they could make it. His heart was pumping too hard. It hurt. He needed to get out of here. He needed to breathe...

*  
Allanon stood in the Great Hall with his back to the doors when Ander entered the room. He was breathing heavily; angry and nervous.

The door closed behind the Elves of the Black Guard and Allanon turned around. Ander's jaw was grinding in anger.

„Druid,“ he said. Allanon looked like always. No emotion in this face that resembled his heart – a heart of stone.

Allanon wanted to answer immediately.

„I won't apologize, King Ander. All I wanted was to help!“

„Silence!“ Ander said, loudly. He tried to sound like a king even though he felt he missed the mark/failed at it. His father always had this look on his face, tired elegance, but Ander needed to be strong now. Brave and assertive. Allanon might've helped to take down Cael Pindanon, but he would NOT act like a king – and the Druid would never again touch Amberle this way.

„You're silent now, it's my time to talk, Allanon.“

Allanon looked at him as if he wanted to tell Ander 'Boy, you're behaving like a bratty kid', but Ander resisted. Nobody would run him over again. He was the last Elessedil alive and he would stand his ground against anyone who hurt Amberle or tried to influence him.

Ander raised one finger at Allanon, „First: you're not welcome in the Sanctuary anymore. If you go there you will be removed. You've been my guest for too long.“ He raised another finger. „Second: you are not Commander of my Black Guard and you won't make them obey you.“ Ander raised his empty ring finger at last. „Third: if you hadn't tried to shut down Amberle you'd know now what she told me, and we're in trouble Allanon. Fucking big trouble.“

Finally, Allanon showed an emotion. It was surprise. „Amberle had a stroke. She was talking nonsense. From Bandon at the Black Henge. Believe me, Ander, I would feel if Bandon is already up to something evil. Additionally, the Ellcrys can't see.“

Ander snorted, „This arrogance is really unbelievable, Allanon. Amberle is able to see things. I believe her and you should, too.“ Ander put his hands on the table and suddenly felt tired and exhausted again. He wished his father was alive. Or Arion. Diana. Just anyone. He didn't feel strong, but he had to be. For Arborlon. For Amberle. „Bandon kidnapped a baby from one of the farms near the Henge and sacrificed it on the Black Altar. We don't know what's to come next.“

Allanon looked at Ander in disbelief, „He did what? Are you sure, Ander?“

„I would allow you to ask Amberle about it but I fear you might kill her by accident,“ Ander said bitterly. „What were you thinking, Druid?“

Allanon sat down at the table and shook his head, sighing. „Listen, King Ander, I didn't realize. I didn't know... Bandon is a master of disguise, he can hide his thoughts from me. I thought that the Ellcrys-“, he stopped and corrected his sentence, „Amberle is still asleep and that she may have over reacted. That seemed more realistic to me than the fact that Bandon might be already in preparations for something. I'm sorry. But I can't be sorry that I am of the opinion that Amberle needs to stay strong. She has a destiny to fulfill.“

„She didn't give in to her destiny by free will and you know it“, Ander snapped. „She may have taken the seed and brought it to the Bloodfire, but her sacrifice was not voluntary. She did it because there was no other chance for saving the world from the demons. You told her that there was no other choice. It was forced. And to be honest, I think Amberle isn't powerful enough to save us. The Ellcrys is no guardian.“

Now Allanon's voice rose. „The Ellcrys is the only protection we have!“

Both men stood up in one harsh movement. Two emotions fought in Ander's face. Responsibilty and love. He could not help Amberle without bringing risk to the peace again.

„We both know that Bandon is up to something really bad and when he's at the Black Henge, the only possible thing is that he is summoning demons out of the Forbidding. He wouldn't hide there!“

„This is not possible“, Allanon said, his face stoney. „They were banished again.“

„And if NOT, Allanon? What if the defence that the Ellcrys once was is weakened?“

The question hung between the two men and Allanon did not have an answer to that.

„I have to wait for Wil,“ he finally said, his eyes filled with sadness. „I can't face Bandon alone. I need help.“

„What to do in the mean time?“, Ander asked.

„It won't take long until Wil returns. He's been absent for three days now, if he's fast he'll be back in two days. We have to wait for him.“

Allanon headed for the door. Before he opened it, he turned around to Ander again. „We must not let feelings cast doubt on our path and blur our mind.“

Yes, Ander knew, but he would do it anyway.

He looked at his hand and his empty ring finger. There were things that needed to wait.

*

The sun was already setting as Wil and Eretria finally made it out of Safehold. They were both breathing heavily and almost fell down the slippery stairs out of the maze. They were exhausted, but happy to come out alive. Their hands clinged tight to the handrail and they had to bend over to breathe and collect the rest of their strength. Wil knew it wasn't over and that they had to go further away from here.

„We need to go, quick“, he gasped. Thank the Gods, the horse was still there. Eretria seemed like she was about to collapse. „Eretria, you have to be strong,“ he said and knew how awkward he sounded. She had been through living hell more than once. She would make another few miles. Then collapse.

He took her hand and had to drag her to the stallion where he lifted her up and got in front of her, „You have to hold on tight, please...“

She felt like a sack of potatoes behind him, but she put her hands around his hips. Wil rowelled the horse and rode into the sunset. Away from that place that had given him and Eretria so much pain, to a place, that would give them even more. And Amberle.

 

~

The sky was dark blue and the sun set as a ball of blood red color when Wil and Eretria stopped. He had decided to rest. Adrenaline was still pumping through their veins but Eretria had lost her grip around Wil's hips all too quickly. He helped her down from the horse and they made a little camp fire. Wil went through their supplies while Eretria sat by the camp fire, warming her feet and hands.

„You need to eat, take it,“ Wil said and gave Eretria half of a loaf of honey bread and some light wine. She took it and ate the bread in a few seconds.

„When did you eat and drink last?“ the half elf asked. He hated silence. And he knew Eretria was boiling inside with emotions. He could see it and it made him feel uncomfortable.

„It's not been that long“, she answered slowly, taking a deep breath. She drank the rest of her wine and Wil took the wineskin.

„What happened down there?“

Eretria looked at him for a few awkward moments then she just stood up and walked towards the tiny lake close to their camp fire. „I need to wash myself“, she said.

Wil followed her, confused. „Eretria?!“

„What? Do you want to come with me?“, she didn't ask it with that sexy tone in her voice. There was no wit or seduction. The words seemed more like a clot of something really disgusting she had to spit out.

„No! I just want to know what's wrong with you! I saved you from the Trolls, you were naked and this ugly bastard had his fucking fingers _inside you_! I think I can expect you to tell me the truth!“

Eretria got angry. Wil could see her chest move with every breathe in and out. „And don't you think I deserve to know why you're alone? Where. Is. Amberle?!“

He knew she would ask that at one point but still, the pain hit him like a horse kicking out. His heart sank. „Listen, … it's not that easy,“ he started. His hands were raised, about to touch Eretria, but he didn't know what to do or say.

Eretria stiffened. She shook her hair behind her back. „Is she dead?“ Eretria didn't want to lay any feeling in this question but she failed horribly. Wil saw pain and fear in her eyes. He knew these feelings... and more. He even knew shame and guilt because he hadn't held Amberle back.

„No, she's alive,“ he finally said, his arms falling down to his sides and his shoulders sank. „She is alive.“ 

Eretria made a hissing sound like steam bursting out of a tea cattle and her eyes filled with tears. Wil stepped towards her but then stopped in front of her. It was weird. He had slept with her, maybe had a little crush... they had become friends after all, but he just couldn't hug her. Not in that vulnerable moment.

„Where is she, Wil? Why didn't she come with you?“

She came closer, her eyebrows narrowed and tears rolling down her cheeks.  
Wil had to swallow hard and blink away his own tears.

„She's the Ellcrys now,“ he said.

There was no movement, no sound for an endless moment. Eretria just stood there, motionless and she didn't even breathe. Then she lunged for Wil with fiery eyes... and punched him right in the face.  
„You killed him!“ Eretria screamed at Wil.

Wil looked at her with a blood stained face and totally confused expression.

„Yes, indeed I did! I saved your life! Is that a way to thank me? He wanted to rape you!“ His behavior and gestures went from relief to anger. He didn't even realize she was naked in front of him. She shivered.

„Wouldn't be the first guy!“ she hissed.

„We don't have time to talk! We have to get out. Get dressed!“ Wil said in a rough tone, while he took her clothes that were scattered across the floor and threw them in Eretria's direction.

„My knives... they have to be here somewhere...“, Eretria muttered, puzzled. But Wil, still fuelled by adrenaline and anger just yanked the daggers out of Nephron's body, cleaned them on the dead man's clothing and gave them to Eretria.

„I have to knives with me. We will make it somehow, and now get dressed. Please.“

Eretria got into her clothes as fast as she could. As long as she was in this panic mode she could still walk and fight. But she had to stay strong. Don't think, just run, she told herself.

There was a static in her ears and in her mind there was just one word that kept her upright. Her last name.

Blackthorne.  
Blackthorne.  
Blackthorne...  
…

Wil grabbed her arm as soon as she was in her harness. She was hectic and her still sensitive nipples rubbed against the rough fabric but she had to focus on survival. Wil had killed Nephron, they had to flee quick without any trace. The trolls would wonder what had happened to him and then realize that Eretria was gone...

„Come!“ Wil commanded. His blond hair fell into his face and in his blue eyes there was a glance. It was determination.

Eretria wondered; Where is Amberle? She wanted to ask but there was no time. She had to wait with that until they were out of this place, and probably a few miles from here... At first she wanted to ask Wil if there was a chance to save the Troll women but reality hit her. Down here, there were some rules she knew and they reminded her of the Rover families. Without her men or owners, the women would be raped and killed. By other men who weren't their husbands or slave owners. Maybe it was better to leave them here.

A blue light coming from Wil's closed fist let Eretria focus on him again. He guided her out of Safehold, the world outside the bubble Wil created with the Elfstones seemed opaque.

„The elfstones make us invisible“, he said softly, „I have no idea how that works.“ His face was stiff and Eretria saw that the Elfstones started to burn his hand again. It smelled like burning flesh and she felt terrible for him. Wil took the pain without any comment but she knew he suffered from it a lot. When they got out of here alive, she would take care of his hand. She owed him. He had saved her miserable ass two times. She maybe had given Amberle and Wil time down here but it didn't weigh in enough in her eyes. He may have killed Nephron but he hadn't known what Nephron wanted to tell her. They had to exchange news as soon as possible.

They could sneak around most of the Troll guards but some of them were uncomfortably near even though they took some short cuts. Eretria heard their snarly voices and grunting sounds. No wonder Nephron had become one of them. These animals were his real brothers, not even Cephalo had been so incredibly disgusting.

When Eretria and Wil came around a corner they couldn't avoid a fight with the Troll guards. Two of them blocked the way out. Eretria sighed. The trolls seemed alarmed as if they had sensed that something was wrong here. Their snouts got into the air, sniffing.

Oh shit, oh holy fucking mother of shits, Eretria thought. We'll be killed. But she drew her daggers as silently as she could. One of the Trolls had a drum and he started smacking it in a rhythm that probably meant 'HUMANS IN THE DUNGEON!' Wil sighed as well and then he nodded to Eretria and he let his hand with the Elfstones down. Suddenly, the translucent veil around Eretria and Wil faded.

 

*  
I'm so screwed, Wil thought right the moment the Elfstones went dark. But Eretria was quick, really quick. Even before their opponents could react Eretria had attacked one of them. Wil saw blood splattering all over the floor while he was still trying to get a grip on his knife. His hand hurt too much from the Elfstones and he felt the blisters burst and ooze.

Wil knew he was no knight nor hero nor even a warrior and without Eretria he would totally be Troll feast already. He didn't even have time to feel happiness to find her alive, everything was hectic and he panicked. He had saved her from a rape, surely, but her reaction felt so wrong... The drum Troll ran towards him and all Wil was able to do was to raise his hands with the scimitars in it.

„YOU IDIOT!“, Eretria cried. Her face was stunningly beautiful and she was as quick and her moves were as smooth as a cat's. „LOWER THE WEAPONS, YOU STUPID FUCK!“ 

Wil obeyed and took down his ends, diving under the Troll‘s first club attack. With a fast twist of his body Wil got behind the Troll and rammed his scimitars in the Troll‘s sides. He hoped he had aimed for the right spots -as he had learned from his medicinal studies- and the Troll would be fatally wounded and bleed out quick. Wil felt a dull pain in his back and when he looked up he saw that Eretria had used him as a human ramp to reach the Troll's head. She now hung on the creature and stabbed him right in the neck. The shrieking was painful in Wil's ears, but the Trolls just fell to the ground, twitching and bleeding. From afar Wil and Eretria could hear more drums and calls.

„Who's the idiot, bitch? You could have killed him a little less noisy!“ Wil screamed at Eretria. He shoved her from the dead body and the moment she turned around and looked him in the eyes he saw so much anger and hatred he felt a moment of cold fear in his stomach.

„Oh shut up, Elf boy, without me you'd be dead by now!“

„Without you I wouldn't even be here again!“ he hissed and immediately regretted his harsh words.  
There was a silence now he couldn't bare, while they took their weapons from the bodies. Wil knew now there was no way to use the Elfstones again. They had become useless for the moment after the Trolls could've seen through the veil and now every Troll in this labyrinth would hunt them down.

„RUN!“ he said. And they ran. Eretria behind Wil. He could remember the way this time – the last time he hoped – and if they were able to sprint for a minute or two, they could make it. His heart was pumping too hard. It hurt. He needed to get out of here. He needed to breathe...

*  
Allanon stood in the Great Hall with his back to the doors when Ander entered the room. He was breathing heavily; angry and nervous.

The door closed behind the Elves of the Black Guard and Allanon turned around. Ander's jaw was grinding in anger.

„Druid,“ he said. Allanon looked like always. No emotion in this face that resembled his heart – a heart of stone.

Allanon wanted to answer immediately.

„I won't apologize, King Ander. All I wanted was to help!“

„Silence!“ Ander said, loudly. He tried to sound like a king even though he felt he missed the mark/failed at it. His father always had this look on his face, tired elegance, but Ander needed to be strong now. Brave and assertive. Allanon might've helped to take down Cael Pindanon, but he would NOT act like a king – and the Druid would never again touch Amberle this way.

„You're silent now, it's my time to talk, Allanon.“

Allanon looked at him as if he wanted to tell Ander 'Boy, you're behaving like a bratty kid', but Ander resisted. Nobody would run him over again. He was the last Elessedil alive and he would stand his ground against anyone who hurt Amberle or tried to influence him.

Ander raised one finger at Allanon, „First: you're not welcome in the Sanctuary anymore. If you go there you will be removed. You've been my guest for too long.“ He raised another finger. „Second: you are not Commander of my Black Guard and you won't make them obey you.“ Ander raised his empty ring finger at last. „Third: if you hadn't tried to shut down Amberle you'd know now what she told me, and we're in trouble Allanon. Fucking big trouble.“

Finally, Allanon showed an emotion. It was surprise. „Amberle had a stroke. She was talking nonsense. From Bandon at the Black Henge. Believe me, Ander, I would feel if Bandon is already up to something evil. Additionally, the Ellcrys can't see.“

Ander snorted, „This arrogance is really unbelievable, Allanon. Amberle is able to see things. I believe her and you should, too.“ Ander put his hands on the table and suddenly felt tired and exhausted again. He wished his father was alive. Or Arion. Diana. Just anyone. He didn't feel strong, but he had to be. For Arborlon. For Amberle. „Bandon kidnapped a baby from one of the farms near the Henge and sacrificed it on the Black Altar. We don't know what's to come next.“

Allanon looked at Ander in disbelief, „He did what? Are you sure, Ander?“

„I would allow you to ask Amberle about it but I fear you might kill her by accident,“ Ander said bitterly. „What were you thinking, Druid?“

Allanon sat down at the table and shook his head, sighing. „Listen, King Ander, I didn't realize. I didn't know... Bandon is a master of disguise, he can hide his thoughts from me. I thought that the Ellcrys-“, he stopped and corrected his sentence, „Amberle is still asleep and that she may have over reacted. That seemed more realistic to me than the fact that Bandon might be already in preparations for something. I'm sorry. But I can't be sorry that I am of the opinion that Amberle needs to stay strong. She has a destiny to fulfill.“

„She didn't give in to her destiny by free will and you know it“, Ander snapped. „She may have taken the seed and brought it to the Bloodfire, but her sacrifice was not voluntary. She did it because there was no other chance for saving the world from the demons. You told her that there was no other choice. It was forced. And to be honest, I think Amberle isn't powerful enough to save us. The Ellcrys is no guardian.“

Now Allanon's voice rose. „The Ellcrys is the only protection we have!“

Both men stood up in one harsh movement. Two emotions fought in Ander's face. Responsibilty and love. He could not help Amberle without bringing risk to the peace again.

„We both know that Bandon is up to something really bad and when he's at the Black Henge, the only possible thing is that he is summoning demons out of the Forbidding. He wouldn't hide there!“

„This is not possible“, Allanon said, his face stoney. „They were banished again.“

„And if NOT, Allanon? What if the defence that the Ellcrys once was is weakened?“

The question hung between the two men and Allanon did not have an answer to that.

„I have to wait for Wil,“ he finally said, his eyes filled with sadness. „I can't face Bandon alone. I need help.“

„What to do in the mean time?“, Ander asked.

„It won't take long until Wil returns. He's been absent for three days now, if he's fast he'll be back in two days. We have to wait for him.“

Allanon headed for the door. Before he opened it, he turned around to Ander again. „We must not let feelings cast doubt on our path and blur our mind.“

Yes, Ander knew, but he would do it anyway.

He looked at his hand and his empty ring finger. There were things that needed to wait.

*

The sun was already setting as Wil and Eretria finally made it out of Safehold. They were both breathing heavily and almost fell down the slippery stairs out of the maze. They were exhausted, but happy to come out alive. Their hands clinged tight to the handrail and they had to bend over to breathe and collect the rest of their strength. Wil knew it wasn't over and that they had to go further away from here.

„We need to go, quick“, he gasped. Thank the Gods, the horse was still there. Eretria seemed like she was about to collapse. „Eretria, you have to be strong,“ he said and knew how awkward he sounded. She had been through living hell more than once. She would make another few miles. Then collapse.

He took her hand and had to drag her to the stallion where he lifted her up and got in front of her, „You have to hold on tight, please...“

She felt like a sack of potatoes behind him, but she put her hands around his hips. Wil rowelled the horse and rode into the sunset. Away from that place that had given him and Eretria so much pain, to a place, that would give them even more. And Amberle.

 

~

The sky was dark blue and the sun set as a ball of blood red color when Wil and Eretria stopped. He had decided to rest. Adrenaline was still pumping through their veins but Eretria had lost her grip around Wil's hips all too quickly. He helped her down from the horse and they made a little camp fire. Wil went through their supplies while Eretria sat by the camp fire, warming her feet and hands.

„You need to eat, take it,“ Wil said and gave Eretria half of a loaf of honey bread and some light wine. She took it and ate the bread in a few seconds.

„When did you eat and drink last?“ the half elf asked. He hated silence. And he knew Eretria was boiling inside with emotions. He could see it and it made him feel uncomfortable.

„It's not been that long“, she answered slowly, taking a deep breath. She drank the rest of her wine and Wil took the wineskin.

„What happened down there?“

Eretria looked at him for a few awkward moments then she just stood up and walked towards the tiny lake close to their camp fire. „I need to wash myself“, she said.

Wil followed her, confused. „Eretria?!“

„What? Do you want to come with me?“, she didn't ask it with that sexy tone in her voice. There was no wit or seduction. The words seemed more like a clot of something really disgusting she had to spit out.

„No! I just want to know what's wrong with you! I saved you from the Trolls, you were naked and this ugly bastard had his fucking fingers inside you! I think I can expect you to tell me the truth!“

Eretria got angry. Wil could see her chest move with every breathe in and out. „And don't you think I deserve to know why you're alone? Where. Is. Amberle?!“

He knew she would ask that at one point but still, the pain hit him like a horse kicking out. His heart sank. „Listen, … it's not that easy,“ he started. His hands were raised, about to touch Eretria, but he didn't know what to do or say.

Eretria stiffened. She shook her hair behind her back. „Is she dead?“ Eretria didn't want to lay any feeling in this question but she failed horribly. Wil saw pain and fear in her eyes. He knew these feelings... and more. He even knew shame and guilt because he hadn't held Amberle back.

„No, she's alive,“ he finally said, his arms falling down to his sides and his shoulders sank. „She is alive.“ 

Eretria made a hissing sound like steam bursting out of a tea cattle and her eyes filled with tears. Wil stepped towards her but then stopped in front of her. It was weird. He had slept with her, maybe had a little crush... they had become friends after all, but he just couldn't hug her. Not in that vulnerable moment.

„Where is she, Wil? Why didn't she come with you?“

She came closer, her eyebrows narrowed and tears rolling down her cheeks.  
Wil had to swallow hard and blink away his own tears.

„She's the Ellcrys now,“ he said.

There was no movement, no sound for an endless moment. Eretria just stood there, motionless and she didn't even breathe. Then she lunged for Wil with fiery eyes... and punched him right in the face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, I'm rubbish lol I didn't update in a while. Life's busy but I'm doing my best. Even though, Freiya Norway is about to burst into the story soon :) I hope you like it. I would love some comments, friends :)


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